Brexit: Defeat for social pluralism

People take part in a march against the outcome of the recent EU referendum, in London, Britain, July 2, 2016. Around 40,000 people attended the anti-Brexit march after a petition with 4 million signatures was submitted to the parliament, calling for a second referendum.

Britain’s exit from the European Union (Brexit) is a defeat for social pluralism, and this is a serious problem, according to academics from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)

People take part in a march against the outcome of the recent EU referendum, in London, Britain, July 2, 2016. Around 40,000 people attended the anti-Brexit march after a petition with 4 million signatures was submitted to the parliament, calling for a second referendum.

Brexit reflects the existence of a generational gap — the young ones embrace globalised processes, while the older ones see it an agonising process, said experts from the faculty of political and social sciences.

In their view, what happened was a blow to integration not only for the EU but also for the Britons.

The participation during the “Brexit” referendum was a historic figure, with votes from 72 per cent of the people on the electoral register, Javier Oliva Posada, a Professor said.

“The British electorate voted, nevertheless, not enough young people did so and about 25 per cent of those aged between 18 and 30 didn’t even register to vote,” added Oliva Posada.

The young electorate in London voted for pluralism and integration as many are children of immigrants or from inter-racial, inter-faith or inter-cultural relationships.

The academic detailed that 73 per cent of the voters aged between 18 and 25 opted for staying in the EU while only 27 per cent voted to leave it.

In the 35 to 44 age bracket, 52 per cent voted to stay and the rest voted to leave while adults older than 45 voted to leave the EU with 62 per cent.

“Brexit” is based on a clear perception, if a little racist and exclusive, which came about due to the increase in the number of illegal immigrants arriving from countries such as Libya, Syria, Afghanistan and Mali, according to the UNAM academic.

British Prime Minister David Cameron’s government was one of the most reluctant in Europe to the assimilation of immigrants.

“It seems like we are living in two worlds: one of adults and the other of young people, and the democratic model is not able to join these two perspectives. On the contrary, it generates a sort of clash that could have consequences in the future including in inter-personal and family relations,” an expert concluded.

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